Adw cleaner find Adware, Malwarebytes PREMIUM not - why?

[Davidh1]

Hello,

Today I checked my PC with Windows 10 with both programs  - AdwClaner and MB PREMIUM, and AdwCleaner found 10 problems, MB PREMIUM 0 problems.

Why? Please for help what to do.

Thanks, David

 

 

[Malwarebytes]

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[nukecad]

This is because they have different ways of looking for different things.

Malwarebytes is designed to look for malware, and will also find some Potentialy Unwanted Programs (PUPs) and Potentially Unwanted Modifications (PUMs).

Adw is designed to look more specifically for PUPs and PUMs.

So for the moment the two things do different jobs, and that is why they are still different programs.

I believe that the intention is to eventually merge them into a future version of Malwarebytes, but for now they still each stand alone and do different jobs.

[Davidh1]

Aha, ok. I didnt know. I am new, and bought 2 years MalwBytes license one week ago.

So i can without risk clear all that AdwCleaner found?

[Porthos]

3 hours ago, Davidh1 said:

So i can without risk clear all that AdwCleaner found?

I would if you are NOT using Advanced System Care. I personally would not let that program within a light year of any computer I own or service.

[Davidh1]

Porthos, thank you for yout info. Would you recommend some other program to clean privacy, registry, optimazing PC?

Malyarebytes is TOP for protection, but for system care, which...?

Thank you in advance.

David

[Elisabeth]

@Davidh1, there's no better "system care" than yourself  

 

[exile360]

1 hour ago, Elisabeth said:

@Davidh1, there's no better "system care" than yourself  

 

Pretty much what Elisabeth said above.  That said, there are some utilities available, both built into Windows itself as well as from third parties that are probably better and safer to use.  The built in Disk Cleanup utility for one, along with CCleaner (though I'd highly recommend downloading either the 'Slim' or 'Portable' build, neither of which include any bundled offers or toolbars; both are available on this page: https://www.ccleaner.com/ccleaner/builds) can be used for clearing history, temp files and other junk that builds up over time.  I wouldn't recommend using its registry cleaner component at all (or any other registry cleaner) unless you really know what you are doing with the Windows registry, as deleting 'orphaned' or 'old' registry keys and entries does nothing to enhance system performance or fix any kind of issues and can easily damage the system to the point of breaking installed software, damaging built in OS/system components and even potentially rendering the system unbootable if the wrong thing is removed/deleted, so if you do use any kind of registry cleaner, be sure to check every item it identifies to verify that it is safe to remove (like keys from applications which have already been uninstalled etc.).

System optimizers and similar applications are little more than snake oil, and generally do nothing to truly improve the performance of Windows, especially given the fact that every modern version of Windows since Vista has been very good at self-maintenance and performance optimization via automatic performance tuning and garbage collection and cleanup and regularly scheduled automatic maintenance tasks.

Because of this, the best thing you can do to improve system performance is usually simply to run fewer applications in the background when your system starts up, particularly for any software that you don't use every day that might run on boot and keep processes in the background.  Items such as game client launchers (like Steam etc.), instant messaging applications, email client programs as well as any Microsoft Store apps that you don't use on a regular basis that run at startup can be disabled or, if you don't use them any more, removed entirely and can lead to better overall system performance and faster startup times.  Other tasks like disk defragmentation and executing TRIM on SSDs is handled by the OS itself automatically, so no third party application is required for that purpose (and I'd strongly recommend against it if you use an SSD, as normal defragmentation of an SSD can actually dramatically shorten an SSD's lifespan and does nothing to improve its read performance since solid state storage has very fast random read times when compared with traditional mechanical HDD storage drives).

You can learn more about these topics in the following links from Malwarebytes and other sources around the web:

https://www.malwarebytes.com/pup/
https://blog.malwarebytes.com/malwarebytes-news/2016/10/malwarebytes-gets-tougher-on-pups/
https://blog.malwarebytes.com/cybercrime/2015/06/digital-snake-oil/
https://blog.malwarebytes.com/cybercrime/2015/06/driver-updaters-digital-snake-oil-part-2/
https://blog.malwarebytes.com/cybercrime/2015/07/pup-makers-digital-snake-oil-part-3/
https://blog.malwarebytes.com/threats/registry-cleaner/
https://blog.malwarebytes.com/puppum/2016/12/why-malwarebytes-detects-pc-pitstop-as-potentially-unwanted/
https://blog.malwarebytes.com/malwarebytes-news/2017/11/winning-the-battle-against-pups-on-your-computer-and-in-u-s-district-court/
https://blog.malwarebytes.com/puppum/2016/07/pup-friday-cleaning-up-with-5-star-awards/
https://blog.malwarebytes.com/puppum/2016/08/systweak-redux-our-response/

Regarding legal precedent, please refer to the following articles which cite two cases involving Malwarebytes and vendors blocked as PUP:

https://blog.ericgoldman.org/archives/2017/11/section-230c2-protects-anti-malware-vendor-enigma-v-malwarebytes.htm
https://blog.ericgoldman.org/archives/2018/09/section-230-helps-malware-vendor-avoid-liability-for-blocking-decision-pc-drivers-v-malwarebytes.htm

The following links should also prove informative as to why many items are classified as PUP by Malwarebytes:

https://decentsecurity.com/#/registry-cleaners/
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/2563254/microsoft-support-policy-for-the-use-of-registry-cleaning-utilities
http://miekiemoes.blogspot.com/2008/02/registry-cleaners-and-system-tweaking_13.html
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/t/407147/answers-to-common-security-questions-best-practices/#entry2853053
https://www.howtogeek.com/171633/why-using-a-registry-cleaner-wont-speed-up-your-pc-or-fix-crashes/
https://www.howtogeek.com/162683/pc-cleaning-apps-are-a-scam-heres-why-and-how-to-speed-up-your-pc/
https://lifehacker.com/5482701/whats-the-registry-should-i-clean-it-and-whats-the-point
https://lifehacker.com/5033518/debunking-common-windows-performance-tweaking-myths
https://www.howtogeek.com/198758/never-download-a-driver-updating-utility-theyre-worse-than-useless/
http://www.howtogeek.com/98465/htg-explains-when-do-you-need-to-update-your-drivers/
https://www.howtogeek.com/233115/the-only-way-to-safely-update-your-hardware-drivers-on-windows/
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-1857635/good-free-automatic-driver-updater.html
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-1974868/trusted-driver-updater.html
https://www.howtogeek.com/172839/10-types-of-system-tools-and-optimization-programs-you-dont-need-on-windows/
https://computer.howstuffworks.com/question1751.htm
https://lifehacker.com/5415355/do-you-really-need-more-than-4gb-of-ram
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/memory-module-upgrade,2264.html
https://www.howtogeek.com/128130/htg-explains-why-its-good-that-your-computers-ram-is-full/
https://techlogon.com/2011/03/28/will-more-ram-memory-make-my-computer-faster/

I hope you find this information useful.

[nukecad]

Just to add to what Exile360 has said about using CCleaner.

If you do try it then I suggest that you use the 'Custom Clean' rather than the newish 'Easy Clean'.

Easy Clean uses it's own cleaning definitions which you can't modify (well you can a bit, but have to do it each time) it's meant as a very simple option for users with little computer knowledge.
Custom Clean gives you more control of what to clean and what not to clean, lets you add specific things to clean or exclude specific things, and remembers your settings.

[Porthos]

3 hours ago, exile360 said:

CCleaner (though I'd highly recommend downloading either the 'Slim' or 'Portable' build, neither of which include any bundled offers or toolbars

But still tries to sell you the paid version on just about every startup. Also has some new privacy settings you have to manually opt out of.

3 hours ago, exile360 said:

I wouldn't recommend using its registry cleaner component at all (or any other registry cleaner)

100% agree about all registry cleaners.

I stopped installing/recommending/using  Ccleaner soon after Avast acquired them. Had clients complaining that they were getting billed for a sub (fell for an offer because they thought they had too)since I told them it was free. Had clients end up with Avast installed and did not know how they got it( pre checked offer when getting update).

I could go on.

 

Edited August 8, 2019 by Porthos

[nukecad]

They have improved again recently.

Someone finally saw sense and started listening to the user forum.

There are still some issues but it does look as if the marketing men have been told to back off and let them get their former reputation back.

We'll see how it goes.

 

[exile360]

I've been using the portable build this entire time (for years) and haven't had a single instance of CCleaner running on system startup or displaying any advertisements/promotions for any other products.  That said, it is likely that the Slim version probably did/does so the portable build may be the best option, assuming they haven't ceased these aggressive marketing activities.